BH BIZ STAR 2026 AWARDS

The top award for a company – there are many ways in which your application will be given consideration. A leader in sustainability, a magnet attracting the best people, treats employees well, generates a good company ethos, one which makes its workforce proud, generous to charity, good CSR contribution and makes a good profit ethically.

However old your business you will be considered, perhaps you started up but a few years ago and are now approaching a scale up stage. You’re a successful, growing, innovative, creative company with exuberant, enthusiastic staff working well together.

Is there a member of staff that always brightens the working day? Your nominee might be the person most other members of staff would suggest as a spokesperson for the group; someone who knows what is going on, is usually involved in it, and often leading it.

Perhaps someone whose worth to the company has only become clear after time; someone who always gets the job done, and done well, but never brags about it, a person who elicits a comment like “Thank goodness, we have him/her. Don’t know what we’d do without them!”

The Community Champion is a company, a department or an individual that has excelled at fundraising and community engagement. That involvement in the community could take any number of forms. A company that offers materials to schools, or sponsors team kits for local rugby, football, or cricket teams. A company happy to give its time to support the community by, for example, allowing staff to spend a day at a hospice or other volunteer activities, or helping pack and deliver local Christmas Hampers. Perhaps you allow staff to take time out to fulfil their duties as a Trustee or Treasurer of a local charity.
This Award is made to an individual, team or company whose endeavours to raise money for charity are exceptional; who go out of their way for others and clearly enjoy the challenge, fun and enjoyment. They may have made a one-off commitment, or they may have shown dedication over time to raise money for a charity or support a good cause.

The company that has made a standout contribution locally over this last year. Visiting schools for careers fairs and mock interviews, hosting visits from pupils, offering work placements, perhaps to multiple local secondary schools. A company that is a keen and active promoter of Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths (STEM) related activities that help to nurture future local talent. Giving valuable staff time during both school hours or for after school clubs for STEM activities or any other programme promoting sustainability, innovation, entrepreneurship, business and citizenship skills.

This should be a company that has the environment in mind in all its activities. It realises the importance of weighing environmental factors against profit; it encourages staff to be green thinking and green acting; it can demonstrate an active recycling programme. In this category, we are looking for actions, not words!

• a turnover of £1 million or less
• £500,000 or less on its balance sheet
• 6 employees or less

For a newcomer to the company, an apprentice or trainee who has shown enthusiasm, willingness to do more, creativity, genuinely fits in well with all staff, will get on in this business.

A company award, or an award for a group or team within a company, who get results, perhaps smash targets, for example, perhaps a HR team who have innovated, made great changes with success, who have worked well together to move the company forward. Alternatively, this could be the entire company if you are just a small group of less than 10 people.

This nomination is for a company that creates a great working environment for its staff. It probably retains staff for longer because it looks after them so well; there is a buzz of social activity and it’s a place where people are happy and proud to work and are quick to say so. Staff are encouraged to support each other to get the job done; it’s a company/business that accepts mistakes are part of human behaviour; it encourages ideas and welcomes constructive criticism. It’s somewhere everyone is treated with respect.